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Monday, July 28, 2014

Assessment of First Phicen

Inspired by Roxanne's blog posts about her Phicen females, I stumbled upon the following video. After viewing, I conducted a more-information and best-price search for: Phicen model PLLB-03 Brown.

The head sculpt is more attractive than most others I have seen. This, along with the supple "skin" and seamless joints, interested me. Her facial features also remind me of someone I know.

There are two versions with this head sculpt in brown complexion. One has straight hair, the other has curly hair, as seen in the video. Based on the April 12, 2012, date of the video, I believe the curly haired version was released first. I chose that version because I prefer curly hair over straight.

My best-price find was located on eBay. My Phicen left China on July 11, 2014, with an estimated delivery between Tuesday, July 29th through Tuesday, September 2nd! I received an email from the seller requesting my patience because it could possibly take several weeks for the package to arrive. If the package did not arrive within a month, the seller asked to be contacted. I already knew that patience would be required based on the proposed estimated date of arrival, but thanked him for his warning.

My Phicen, fortunately was delivered much sooner on Saturday, July 19th. I immediately tore open the end flap of the shipping box to inspect the contents.

The front of the box shows a shapely female silhouette with check marks placed alongside this figure's attributes:

1/6 Seamless female body/33 points of articulation

Large breast size

Brown

The back of the box illustrates the figure's functionality and offers warnings on how not to over-manipulate the figure. To ensure that the consumer understands how fragile the joints are, an extra typewritten (Chinese to English translation) note was included inside that reads:

Please note: the joints of PHICEN Toys TBLeague is fragile if it be moved tightly.

Nudity warning (keep in mind that this is a doll, not a human, and this is a review with photos of the product).

Phicen inside box liner as she arrived.

Overall Assessment:

Pros:

In addition to the attributes indicated on the front of the box, this figure is:

Anatomically correct

Has two extra sets of hands (animal-print hand cuffs are included).

The head is removable, although I have not attempted to remove it.

The "skin and muscle areas" are very supple, similar to the silicone/vinyl mixture used for some "lifelike" collectible baby dolls.

There are preplaced holes in each earlobe for earrings (which can only accommodate a short ear post).

The hair is nicely rooted.

She can stand alone (and why wouldn't she be able to with those flat feet?). Animal-print ankle cuffs are included.

The arms can be raised and lowered and, in the raised position, can be locked into several positions until extended at shoulder level.

Both arms rotate outward and inward.

The hands are fully rotational and can move up and down.

The waist movement is minimal -- two clicks forward, two clicks backward.

The knees bend backward and lock into position with several clicks.

The feet are removable and fully rotational. They can move up and down slightly in the forward position.

It took a while for me to find and move the hip joints, which have slight left and right sway and up and down swing where the legs can be lifted forward. The side panel of the box illustrates more movement than I was able to achieve.

This could be perceived as a con to some: Phicen is not a girly girly figure in facial appearance, but her face is more appealing than most brown female action figures.

Dressed initially in a Mixis fashion with borrowed earrings from Prettie Girls Lena, Phicen poses for a close-up.

Cons:

Phicen has man hands, all three pairs.

There is supposed to be a left and right sway movement at the waist. I could never make this happen.

All joints are rigid with awkward movement.

Finding shoes to fit her long flat feet, which measure 1-1/2 x 1/2 inch, will be difficult.

In some positions, an impression of the joints is visible underneath the "skin."

Because of the joint fragility, manipulating for posing will be minimal for fear of breaking a joint.

Clearly the pros outweigh the cons.

Additional photos were taken after I fluffed the hair with a styling brush and dressed Phicen. The flat feet were replaced with OJItoys' FemBasix high-heel feet with molded-on shoes. The extra feet were purchased several years ago for the Perfect Body Stage 2 female by Blue Box Toys. The brown color is not an exact match for either figure but is a closer match for Phicen.

Phicen holds a pair of new feet, then poses after they have been placed.

I decided Phicen should be named Pam (a name that I will remember because of her mature body: think Pam Grier). As a dressed doll, her mature body and face give her a motherly look...

Pam becomes the perfect mother for Calista.

...or maybe, in the right clothes, she could be an educator.

Brianna Joy and Calista will be excellent students in Ms. Phicen's classroom.

Conclusion:
Even with the cons, I am not disappointed in this purchase. Pam reinforces the fact that dolls as inanimate representations of humans are not just pretty playthings to collect, display, and/or document. They can be posed, redressed, and otherwise enjoyed. In the case of Ms. Phicen, however, the posing should be done gingerly.

14 comments:

Good review on the Phicen figure. I have 2 of them. the first one I got does not bend at the elbow, but I did not know it and ended up breaking her arm trying to manipulate the elbow. The second has all of the points of articulation and has to be handled with care. Another issue I see with the Phicen body is the skin tends to attract fabric fuzz and dust and is difficult to clean that up. But, they are truly beautiful and realistic bodies. They are pretty expensive though. I would love to get one of the newer ones with the steel exoskeleton's but they are still to pricey. These are supposed to have easier joint manipulation. This is the first time I have seen one with the brown skin. Will have to keep on the lookout for them. Thanks for sharing.

Thank you for taking the time to read my review of this Phicen figure. There is a warning on the back of the box about dust and what appears to be easy staining from clothing dye. It reads, verbatim: Attention: Dust on the body or be fabric dyeing. Please use water to clean.

The exoskeleton ones sound interesting, but I think this Phicen or anything similar will be it for me.

Thanks for sharing. That is especially helpful to know that the Phicen figure can wear shoes that fit Blue Box Toys' Perfect Body feet. Some Ken molded plastic sandals would do. At least, I used some for my PB female.

Thanks for the tip on Ken's sandals possibly fitting Pam. I don't think I have any but this is good to know. I wish I had purchased more of the extra feet from OJI. I think there were different shoe colors available. These are no longer available on their website.

This is a doll that I would like to touch and manipulate - lol, that sounded dirty. Anyway, though I am VERY curious about the dolls movements and texture I doubt I would buy one. I kinda like seeing a dolls joints. It makes them seem more "doll like" to me.

Thanks for the mention, Debbie! I don't have this one. She is quite attractive, especially in her Mixis clothes, earrings, and OJI shoes! D7ana is right, Ken sandals will fit on her original flat feet. I can't believe that she is able to squeeze into Lena's clothes. If they ever make a brown Phicen with the new stainless steel skeleton, I'm going to be one of the first in line to buy it. Thanks for this great review!

Trust me, it was very difficult getting her into Lena's fashion. I literally had to squeeze her into the blouse and pants, and when I say squeeze, I mean squeeze. The Velcro in the back is barely touching!

Disclaimer

Any links that I share or any blogs I write are for informational purposes only, and are not a warranty or guarantee, expressed or implied, that your experience with a vendor or company will be the same as mine. I am not affiliated with any of the companies whose dolls I buy or write about.

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